Wear performance and wear monitoring of nylon gears made using conventional and additive manufacturing techniques

Wenhan Li; Aida Annisa Amin Daman; Wade Smith; Huaiyu Zhu; Shirley Cui; Pietro Borghesani; Zhongxiao Peng

doi:10.37965/jdmd.2025.758

Authors

Wenhan Li School of Mechanical & Manufacturing Engineering, UNSW Sydney, Australia https://orcid.org/0009-0007-7233-5618
Aida Annisa Amin Daman School of Mechanical & Manufacturing Engineering, UNSW Sydney, Australia https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2895-2367
Wade Smith School of Mechanical & Manufacturing Engineering, UNSW Sydney, Australia https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6234-8104
Huaiyu Zhu School of Mechanical & Manufacturing Engineering, UNSW Sydney, Australia
Shirley Cui School of Mechanical & Manufacturing Engineering, UNSW Sydney, Australia
Pietro Borghesani School of Mechanical & Manufacturing Engineering, UNSW Sydney, Australia
Zhongxiao Peng School of Mechanical & Manufacturing Engineering, UNSW Sydney, Australia

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.37965/jdmd.2025.758

Keywords:

Wear of nylon gears, condition monitoring, gear surface evolution, vibration

Abstract

Polymer gears are increasingly replacing metal gears in applications with low to medium torque. Traditionally, polymer gears have been manufactured using injection moulding, but additive manufacturing (AM) is becoming increasingly common. Among the different types of polymer gears, nylon gears are particularly popular. However, there is currently very limited understanding of the wear resistance of nylon gears, and of the impact of the manufacturing method on gear wear performance. The aims of this work are (a) to study the wear process of nylon gears made using the conventional injection moulding method and two popularly used AM methods, namely, fused deposition modelling and selective laser sintering, (b) to compare and understand the wear performance by monitoring the evolution of the gear surfaces of the teeth, and (c) to study the effect of wear on the gear dynamics by analysing gearbox vibration signals. This paper presents experimental work, data analysis of the wear processes using moulding and image analysis techniques, as well as the vibration data collected during gear wear tests. It also provides key results and further insights into the wear performance of the tested nylon gears. The information gained in this study is useful for better understanding the degradation process of additively manufactured nylon gears.

Conflict of Interest Statement

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.